Plaintiffs affected by the New Year’s terrorist attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans have filed a civil lawsuit against the city’s leadership and private companies hired to consult the city about safety planning in the French Quarter for negligence.
Terrorist Shamsud-Din Jabbar of Texas killed 14 civilians and injured 57 others when he rammed a Ford F-150 through crowds of people celebrating New Year’s on the famous New Orleans street around 3 a.m. Jan. 1. Jabbar was killed in a shootout with police.
“New Orleans is forever changed by this tragedy, and we’ve seen countless people now alter their behavior and avoid Bourbon Street and even the City itself out of fear for their physical safety. Further, it’s impossible to quantify how many people now suffer crippling depression, anxiety and nightmares from what they saw and heard during that attack. It is impossible to quantify this tragedy’s astounding impact on our community,” Maples & Connick partner Aaron Maples said in a statement.
Romanucci & Blandin, a mass disaster law firm that has represented victims in multiple recent mass casualty events and attacks, partnered with New Orleans-based law firm Maples & Connick LLC to file the civil suit that alleges the mass tragedy was not only predictable but preventable.
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The 21 plaintiffs include Antoinette Klima, whose son’s father, Reggie Hunter, died in the attack.
“On New Year’s Day, I received the heartbreaking call that Reggie did not survive,” Klima said in a statement. “Telling our son that his father was gone was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. And I’ve been through a lot in my life—surviving Hurricane Katrina, losing loved ones, and even wading through floodwaters to save my grandfather. But nothing, nothing compares to the pain of losing Reggie and having to break that news to our son.”
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She added that she just marked her son’s first birthday “without his father.”
“It’s been an incredibly tough time. Our son has been robbed of so many milestones—a father’s presence at his first dance, his first kiss, learning to drive, graduating, getting married,” Klima said. “The list of what he’s missing is endless. I don’t know if the pain will ever fully go away. People say it gets easier, but I’m not sure. What I do know is that we must find a way to move forward. We must find accountability, seek justice, and work to ensure that no child ever has to suffer like this again due to senseless violence.”
“People say it gets easier, but I’m not sure.”
Plaintiffs also include the parents of University of Georgia student Elle Eisele, who was struck by the vehicle along with her friend and San Diego State University student Steele Idelson. They sustained life-threatening injuries while two others with them were killed.
Three plaintiffs who survived the attack are also speaking out after the lawsuit was filed.
“Before that fateful night on New Year’s in New Orleans, I was filled with hope and optimism about our city’s future. I felt secure and looked forward to each day, appreciating the vibrant community around me,” survivor Leo Spadoni said in a statement. “That moment changed everything. In an instant, my sense of safety was shattered. The joy I once felt was replaced by a pervasive fear. The city that I once loved and felt a part of now feels like a place of danger and dread. This fear has made me apprehensive about venturing out and living a fulfilling life of enjoyment.”
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Survivor Daniel Ortega said he has “never been a person to travel away from home to experience New Year’s Eve in a popular location until this particular year” because he “always feared large groups of people, especially on special occasions.”
“I will live the rest of my existence hidden away from any event that draws attention and crowds of people.”
Keith Eldridge, who was celebrating his 60th birthday in New Orleans when the attack happened, said he has constant flashbacks since the tragedy.
“This tragic event has affected me in a way that it stays on my mind every day: morning, noon and night. I have continuous flashbacks every day, and I no longer want to be in large crowds or events,” he said. “I don’t think I will ever visit Bourbon Street again, let alone New Orleans. The safety protocols that were in place were not sufficient barriers to protect people, but I truly hope all responsible will learn a lesson and keep it from ever happening again.”
The defendants accused of negligence include the city of New Orleans, New Orleans Police Department, French Quarter Management District, Mott MacDonald LLC, and Hard Rock Construction LLC. Plaintiffs previously told Fox News Digital when the lawsuit was announced late last month that they do not comment on pending litigation.
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The complaint alleged that the city “deviated” from its own plans for New Year’s Eve and the Super Bowl when it decided to replace bollards in November.
While the replacement process was ongoing when the attack occurred in the early morning hours of Jan. 1, officials installed a temporary barrier where Bourbon Street meets Canal Street, presumably to prevent suspicious vehicles from driving down the busy tourist area.
However, according to local business owners and employees who previously spoke with Fox News Digital, that temporary barrier was set down instead of up, allowing vehicles to pass on the holiday.
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For nearly a decade, New Orleans had been discussing improved safety measures for the French Quarter.
“Following the deadly Bastille Day attack in Nice, France, on July 14, 2016, in which a driver drove a box truck on the Promenade des Anglais, killing 86 and injuring 434 others, major city centers all around the world, including New Orleans, were placed on alert for copycat attacks,” the lawsuit states. “To prepare against this type of attack, New Orleans utilized $40 million in taxpayer money to purchase and install the equipment needed to keep its residents and visitors safe.”
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It continues, “Despite years of preparation and warnings of motor vehicle-based attacks, New Orleans officials and their hired consultants and contractors recklessly and willfully put the New Year’s celebrants at risk by focusing reconstruction of safety systems to be ready for the Super Bowl at the expense of New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl.
“The City deviated from its own public safety plan for New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl, a decision that completely exposed Bourbon Street to just the type of attack they were warned to take all reasonable precautions to stop.”
The city began planning updated security measures, including bollards meant to stop vehicles from entering busy streets, in the French Quarter in 2017.
“The French Quarter is often densely packed with pedestrians and represents an area where a mass casualty incident could occur,” a 2017 report states. “This area also presents a risk and target area for terrorism that the FBI has identified as a concern that the City must address.
“Following the attacks in Nice, France; in London, England; and the recent NYC Times Square incident that cited bollards saved lives, it has become clear how popular tourist areas can be threatened by attackers with vehicles and weapons.”
A separate, confidential 2019 report obtained by Fox News from security consulting firm Interfor International warned that Bourbon Street was the “most high-profile target” in New Orleans for a terror attack.
The 60-page security assessment commissioned by the French Quarter Management District states, “The current bollard system on Bourbon Street does not appear to work.”
Federal authorities said Jabbar had previously visited New Orleans on two occasions, once on Oct. 30, 2024, and once on Nov. 10, 2024. He also visited Cairo and Toronto prior to the attack, the FBI said.
While Jabbar apparently acted alone, authorities are investigating whether he had any accomplices.
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